Queen Hustlaz Part 2 Read online

  Jeryca had to take the good with the bad, and her current way of life was worth a few changes. She had heard that Dana survived the fire but was dealing with serious injuries due to it. Jeryca wasn’t completely satisfied with that, but there was little that she could do about it.

  When she found Orlando, he was sitting at the bar with his head bent. “Baby, what’s going on?” she asked.

  “We got to find a way to get Sergio and Ramon some of the money that we owe them. They aren’t going to keep waiting for us to pay them. We knew what we had to do when we decided to take on this job, and we aren’t holding up our end of the bargain. They have been very lenient with us,” he explained.

  “But we been putting in the work to get that money, not them! I don’t understand how they figure it’s cool that we get thirty percent of the money we make! That shit isn’t right at all, and I know I’m not the only one who feels like that. I didn’t think you were the kind of man who would let another muthafucka dictate how you move,” Jeryca said angrily.

  “Look, Jeryca, I’m not gonna have this conversation with you anymore. Stop spending all the gotdamn money like you are. I’m not playing with your ass!” Orlando said angrily. He stormed out of the condo, leaving Jeryca staring at the door, fuming.

  Jeryca stomped to the bedroom and threw herself down. As she lay there, her mind drifted back to the conversation she and Pam had just had. Jeryca closed her eyes and sighed as the past flooded her thoughts.

  When Jeryca was nine, her mother began dating a new guy, and she moved him in after only knowing him for a few weeks. His name was Greg, and his first night in the house he started making comments that made her feel very uncomfortable. She was certain that her mother had heard a few of them and yet said nothing.

  One day, Sheila left her at home alone with Greg, and he began making very degrading comments, calling her a whore and saying that she wouldn’t ever be good for anything just like her worthless mother. He told her that Sheila didn’t love her and she was a thorn in her mother’s side. He assured her that if he killed her, her mother wouldn’t care at all. Jeryca cringed at what he said and believed it to be true. After all, her mother had started acted extremely differently toward her once Greg had moved in.

  The comments soon led to fondling and then, one fateful day, Greg raped Jeryca! She was only nine years old at the time, and when he told her that he would kill her and her mother if she told on him, she believed him. He raped her twice more, and after the second time, she ran away from home.

  She went and stayed with Farrah and her mom. She explained to Shirley what was going on and that she would die if she had to go back. She also begged Shirley not to call the police, because she was too embarrassed to face anyone. Shirley agreed not to call the police, but the following day she contacted Sheila and told her what Jeryca had shared with her.

  Sheila didn’t believe her at first and fussed at Jeryca for spreading lies. She told her that she was going to have her picked up for being a runaway if she didn’t come home immediately. Jeryca remembered that she had never felt so hurt in her life.

  A few weeks later, after Jeryca returned home, Greg attempted to rape Jeryca once again, but she fought him hard. He had her on the bed, and after being bitten and scratched one time too many, Greg hauled off and slapped Jeryca across the face. He had gotten her pants down halfway when, all of a sudden, Greg screamed out in pain. Sheila had walked in, caught him in the act, and bashed him across his lower back with the broom handle. She hit him repeatedly until he fell to the floor, screaming and squirming in pain. Jeryca jumped up and ran out of the room, while her mother continued to beat Greg with the broom, yelling and screaming for him to get out of her house and never to return. She vowed that she would kill him if he ever came within a hundred feet of her or Jeryca again.

  After Greg left, Sheila went to look for Jeryca, who was in the bathroom sitting on the floor, crying and shaking. Her face was red where Greg had slapped her. Sheila grabbed a towel, wet it with cold water, and pressed it against Jeryca’s face. She had looked her daughter in the face, uttering, “I’m sorry I didn’t listen to you, but, sweetie, you got to promise me that you won’t utter one word of this to anyone. I don’t want or need anybody in my business. You will be okay. I’m going to make sure of that.”

  Jeryca had sat speechless on the floor and vowed that she was going to escape the hood at any cost, and never be anything like her mom. That day, little Jeryca had no other choice but to grow up.

  Jeryca quickly snapped out of her thoughts as her cell phone began to ring. She grabbed it off the nightstand. “Hello?” she answered.

  “Hey, boo, what are you doing?” Valerie asked.

  “Nothing right now. What you up to, sis?” she asked.

  “Just got off the plane. Waiting on Zack to pick me up.”

  “Oh, okay! That’s what’s up. I’m glad you made it there safely. How long you been waiting for Zack?” Jeryca asked.

  “We just landed. We got in a little earlier than we were supposed to. Girl, I’m so ready to see this nigga! I missed him so much,” Valerie said, sounding anxious.

  “You really like him, huh?” Jeryca asked.

  “Girl, yes! He makes me feel like no other man has ever made me feel before.” Valerie laughed.

  “Well, I’m glad y’all are getting it together, chick, but I’m gonna let you go ’cause I got a million and one things on my mind, and I need to get myself together,” Jeryca explained.

  “Okay, I was just letting you know I made it safe. You get you some rest. You sound tired,” Valerie replied.

  “I’ma try. Talk to you later,” Jeryca said, before hanging up and lying back on the bed. “I won’t let anyone hurt my sister like they hurt me. I will die on that!” Jeryca whispered to herself.

  * * *

  Tennessee

  Zack walked into Sal’s and ordered a sub. He had just left the gym and was heading home to shower before he drove to the airport to pick Valerie up. He was enjoying his new life, but he missed Dana a lot. He hated that he had to turn on Dana as he did, but the amount of money he made and continued to make dealing with Orlando and Jeryca was worth the loss. He heard through mutual acquaintances that Dana survived the fire and was confined to a wheelchair. It pained him to hear that. In his opinion, Dana would have been better off dead. She shouldn’t have to suffer as they’d told him she was.

  “That will be six bucks even, sir,” the cashier told him, interrupting his thoughts.

  “All right, thanks.” As he turned to walk away, his cell phone started ringing. “Hey, baby! What’s up?” he asked.

  “We got in early, daddy, and I’m waiting here at the airport for you, and I can’t wait to see you,” Valerie cooed.

  “Damn, bae, I just left the gym, and I haven’t even gotten the chance to take a shower yet,” he replied.

  “Well, that’s cool. I like you musty, and besides, we can take a shower together when we get to your place,” Valerie said.

  “All right, I’m on my way then. I can’t wait to see you either,” he said before hanging up.

  Zack arrived at the airport twenty minutes later and spotted Valerie right away. He really liked her, but he just couldn’t get Dana off his mind. He tried to shake the thought of her out of his head, but all the way to the airport, his mind had been on Dana.

  “Hey, baby. I’m glad to see you also. Come on, let’s get out of here,” he said as he grabbed her luggage.

  “Damn, no kiss for me? Humph. You couldn’t have missed me that much,” Valerie said, pouting.

  “Come here, momma, and let me taste those lips. You know I missed your ass. I just got a lot on my mind,” Zack said as he dropped the luggage and reached out for Valerie.

  “That’s more like it!” Valerie said, before locking into a passionate kiss with Zack.

  Zack pulled back, grabbed her luggage, and proceeded to the car. Valerie stood there, watching Zack for a second, before following him to the car.
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br />   Zack turned around. “Come on, Dana, with your slow ass.”

  Valerie stopped in her footsteps and glared at Zack.

  “What’s wrong with you?” he asked, once he realized she was watching him.

  Valerie put on her most glamorous fake smile. “Nothing. Just watching you walk,” she lied, thinking, he doesn’t realize that he just called me Dana. She wanted to go off, but she didn’t want to ruin her weekend before it got started. However, she was going to find a way to hurt him as he had just hurt her.

  As Zack pulled off, he prayed that Valerie hadn’t heard him mistakenly call her Dana. He knew that Valerie wouldn’t like that at all. The two rode down the expressway, each in their own thoughts.

  Valerie glanced over at him once more and smiled. Yes, bittersweet get back!

  Chapter Nine

  It had been over a year since Travis had lost his mother and father. Farrah was his everything, and Travis was still having a rough time accepting that she was gone. He knew what death was, but he didn’t understand why his parents were taken from him. His grandmother, Shirley, tried her best to make him understand, but she didn’t understand herself. Farrah was perfect in her eyes, and she never imagined that she’d be taken from her in such a manner, nor did she imagine that she would be left to take care of a young boy Travis’s age.

  Travis often asked about his father, and each time, Shirley managed to speak kind words of him, even though she felt he had gotten what he deserved in prison. The three guys responsible for his death were all charged with his murder and were awaiting trial. They told her that the man who actually killed Larry was already facing two other murder charges and would probably face the death penalty.

  Jeryca had kept in touch as she promised and sent money, as well as gifts for Travis throughout the year, but Dana and Stephanie had disappeared. She called them repeatedly but got no answer. She knew that Dana was dealing with a lot, but in Shirley’s opinion, Dana still could’ve called from time to time to check on Travis. He loved those girls, and she felt it was wrong for them to forget about him after all they had shared with Farrah.

  “Grandma! Grandma! Look what I found!” Travis shouted as he ran and hopped on Shirley’s lap.

  “Travis, you can’t jump on Grandma like that. You know my bones are frail. But what did you find?” she asked.

  “I found this picture of Mommy and Daddy in my toy box. Look!” he exclaimed.

  Shirley looked at the picture, and Farrah looked happy. “She looks just like her dad,” she whispered.

  “Grandma, what did my mommy’s dad look like?” Travis asked.

  “Here, come with me to my room,” Shirley said as she stood up.

  She walked to her closet, took down an old hat box, and sat on her bed. “Come and sit next to me,” she said as she patted the bed.

  Travis sat down next to his grandma as she opened the box and rummaged through hundreds of pictures until she found one of Farrah’s father.

  She handed the picture to Travis. “This is your grandfather. His name is Nygen Lee. He lives in China, which is his homeland. I met him two years before your mother was born. His family wasn’t too happy about me and him seeing each other, so after finding out I was pregnant they forced him to give us up, threatening to disown him. He has only seen your mother twice, and I haven’t spoken to him in a long, long time,” she told him.

  “Grandma, what’s ‘disown’?” Travis asked.

  “Well, baby, they were basically going to throw him out of the family,” she explained.

  “Oh. They can’t do that, can they?” he asked.

  “Yes, they can do whatever they want, baby. That’s how some grownups act when their loved one does something they don’t like,” she said.

  “That’s mean, Grandma. Did he like my mommy when he saw her?” Travis asked.

  “Baby, when you can understand more we will talk more about this, okay? Just know that, because of how your mother’s father treated her, that’s the reason she fought so hard to keep your father in your life.”

  Travis laid his head on her arm and began to cry. “I miss Mommy and Daddy, Grandma. I wish they were here.”

  Shirley hugged her grandson and rocked him as he cried. Travis had been very strong following both his parents’ deaths and only had a few breakdowns. Shirley tried not to cry, but as Travis’s tears flowed, so did hers.

  That afternoon, after Shirley put Travis to bed for his nap, she decided she was going to attempt to contact Dana and Stephanie once more and see if they could drop by and see Travis. After all, he was their godson.

  * * *

  Dana left therapy Thursday afternoon tired and somewhat withdrawn. She never imagined that recovery would be so difficult. Stephanie had driven her, because Brittany had to take care of a few things. Brittany had been missing in action lately, which made Dana nervous. It was hard for her to trust anyone anymore. She felt that karma was paying her back for all the awful things she had done. She had told Brittany once that if she had to do it all over again, she would. Brittany had laughed, but Dana was serious. Even if karma kept at her, she didn’t regret anything she had done.

  Once Rebecca and Stephanie had Dana secured in the car, Rebecca told the two ladies to wait for her. She had to run back in and get her cell phone. She explained that she thought she left it in the bathroom.

  Dana frowned and looked over at Stephanie. “Didn’t she have her cell phone in her hand before she helped put me in the car?”

  “I don’t know. I wasn’t paying too much attention, but why would she have to lie about leaving her phone inside the center if she didn’t? Don’t make sense to me,” Stephanie said.

  “I don’t know why people do a lot of the things they do, but they do them. I don’t know, Steph. Something about this just doesn’t sit right with me,” Dana replied.

  “Dana, you are just being paranoid thinking that someone isn’t trustworthy. Has she ever treated you in a manner where you felt she wanted to harm you?” Stephanie asked.

  “Well, no, but—”

  “But nothing, Dana. Give her a chance, okay? Please. Do it for me.”

  Dana groaned and nodded in agreement when her cell phone started ringing. “Hello,” she answered.

  “Hey, Dana, this is Shirley. How are you doing?”

  “I’m good, Miss Shirley, and you? How is T Man doing?” Dana asked, glancing over at Stephanie, who was watching Dana with her eyes wide.

  “I’m doing okay. It’s still hard without my Farrah here, but with God on my side, I can’t go wrong. My reason for calling you is that Travis has been asking about you girls. I was hoping you and Stephanie could stop by and pay him a visit one day.”

  “I’d love that. I miss little T Man. When can we stop by?” Dana asked.

  “Dana, we don’t really go anywhere, so anytime is good. You just let me know when you are coming,” Shirley replied.

  “Well, we can come tomorrow. I’m just now leaving my appointment, and I’m really tired, so I need to get some rest,” Dana said.

  “Sounds good. I hope I’m not being rude, dear, but how is your recovery going, sweetie?” Shirley asked.

  Dana stalled a bit before answering. “It’s going okay, just taking more time than I’d like to get back to my old self.” Dana felt rather weird about Shirley inquiring about her health, knowing she was responsible for her daughter losing her life.

  Stephanie waited until Dana got off the phone. “Okay, Miss Daisy, where to next?”

  Dana looked at Stephanie and broke out in laughter. Stephanie was the only person who could make such a joke and get away with it. “Shirley wants us to come and see Travis. She said he has been asking for us. Are you up to going?”

  “Anything to keep you out of that closet space you call a room,” Stephanie replied.

  Dana didn’t respond. She looked out the window and hummed to “Birthday Suit” by The Weeknd. She used music to tune people out when they weren’t saying anything that she was interest
ed in hearing.

  A few minutes later, Rebecca walked out of the center, smiling and waving her phone at the two women. Stephanie looked over at Dana. “I told you, you were paranoid for nothing.”

  Dana didn’t say a word as Rebecca got into the car.

  “I thought I was going to have to tear that place apart looking for my phone, but thankfully someone found it in the bathroom and left it at the front desk. It’s a wonderful thing that we still have people who are honest.”

  Dana rolled her eyes and glanced over at Stephanie with a funny look.

  “Oh! Let’s go to the mall and pick up a few things for Travis. You want to do that?” Stephanie asked, breaking the awkward silence.

  Dana looked at Stephanie as if she had grown two heads. “You know I’m not going to no mall. Look at me. I’m not dressed for that.”

  “It’s just the mall, Dana. Come on. Let’s hang out for a while. We hardly do anything,” Stephanie replied.

  Dana sighed and shook her head, but she agreed to go. They arrived at the mall, and once Stephanie and Rebecca got Dana comfortably out of the car and into her chair, they headed into the mall. Rebecca excused herself, letting Dana and Stephanie know that she had to use the restroom, but she would find them when she finished.

  Dana and Stephanie went from one store to another, picking out shoes, clothes, and a few toys for Travis. As they were heading out of Toys “R” Us, they bumped into Chris, and Dana’s heart dropped. She didn’t know what was going to happen. She knew that they didn’t have anything to do with the fire, but she wondered if they knew that she and the girls were responsible for the robbery, because it was strange to see Chris so far away from the city.

  Chris smiled as he approached the ladies. “Hello. I haven’t seen you ladies in a while. How are you two doing? And who was that lovely lady who came in with y’all?” he asked.